One of Gail Michael's students shared this apple dessert recipe with her long ago. "These were in the lunch box of one of my first-grade students in the fall of 1974," recalls Gail, who lives in West Lafayette, Indiana. The bars taste like apple pie in a baking pan.

This nutty comfort cake from Sharon Buckner of Rhineland, Missouri, gets a sugary top and caramelized gooey bottom as it cooks. Don't be surprised by the thick batter; it will bake into a moist, dense cake.

In the trendy Westport area of Kansas City, Missouri, customers at Broadway Cafe can taste samples of that day's baked goods, including frosted scones, biscotti, coffee cake and this moist apple cake. A generous portion of chopped Granny Smith apples adds flavor and moisture. Be careful turning this apple dessert out of the pan; it's a tender coffee cake.

"The key to this pie is the apples you use," says Mary Schrier of Cumberland, Iowa, who got the recipe from an old handwritten family recipe book. She suggests not using Red Delicious apples. Instead, try Granny Smith, Jonathan or any sweet-tart heirloom apples. "There are quite a few orchards that are starting to carry the heirloom apples, and this old recipe is just waiting for them," she says.

A double dose of caramel—baked in with the fruit and drizzled on top—elevates the humble crisp to new levels of indulgence. Mix two types of apples for the best texture. The tender apples cook down and create a sort of thick sauce; the firm apples hold their shape. Boiled cider, which you can purchase at specialty stores or online or make using our recipe, adds an extra splash of apple flavor to this dessert.

Caramel sauce adds a creamy-sweet finish to individual Apple-Butter Cakelets created by Midwest Living® in honor of Illinois' Amish bakers. You can choose from two Prairie State ingredients, apples or pumpkins, for this treat.

A touch of lemon, chopped cranberries and walnuts make this quick bread seem like coffee cake. Norma Hendricks of Hopedale, Illinois, likes to serve this for dessert. "I made this by combining a couple of recipes 35 years ago," Norma says. "I think I started with a cranberry bread, but most of my kids don't like cranberries. Then I saw an apple bread recipe, and I thought streusel would be good on top.".

Joan Wagner of Overland Park, Kansas, considers this baked apple dessert her easy-entertaining recipe. "You can make these up to six hours ahead and cover them with plastic wrap, so the puff pastry doesn't dry out," she says. "The desserts can bake while your coffee is brewing."

"You make a gooey brown sugar syrup in the bottom of the pan," explains Robert Stricklin, executive chef/educator at Keeter Center, College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, Missouri. "When it comes out of the oven, you turn it upside down like a sticky bun."

Students working at the Keeter Center dining room present slices on a plate with both custard and caramel sauces. The fruit-pecan pie takes extra steps to prepare, but it's worth it.

Store extra jars of this spread to give as hostess gifts, suggests Michele Lowe of Dublin, Ohio. Serve the apple butter on toast or bagels, or with cheese and crackers. "I was thrilled when I found this idiot-proof recipe for apple butter," Michele says. "I like it because I don't have to spend all my time in the kitchen. I can get a few things done while the apples are cooking in the Crock-Pot."

"This is a twist on a popular dish and is one of my personal favorites," says April Osburn from the Clabber Girl Bake Shop in Terre Haute, Indiana. Thinly slice the apples for this apple dessert so they get done in the allotted baking time.

A serving of apple crisp has never been so impressive--or easy! There's no peeling or slicing in this apple dessert recipe. Just assemble the "crisps" the night before and bake right before serving. Brushing apples with a citrus juice keeps them from going brown.

This elegant baked apple dessert comes from the Signature Room on the 95th in Chicago. Tangy Granny Smith apples, chopped dried cherries or cranberries, and walnuts make a hearty filling for the sweetened bread crust.